And Everywhere that Merry Went
by Foodie
Summary: Pippin and Merry continue to bond after their camping trip together. A continuation of Pippin and the Great Camp Out.


And Everywhere That Merry Went...- By Foodie

1400 S.R.

Pippin-10, Merry-18

Merry was walking Pippin back to Tuckborough just as he had promised after their camping trip. Pippin trailed behind Merry by a few steps. He looked up to Merry. As the only boy in his family, he had no example of what boys should act like. He was constantly surrounded by and cooed over by his older sisters. Now he knew—Merry was exactly the kind of boy Pippin should be just like.

Merry didn't have any brothers or sisters, but he could see himself spending more time with Pippin and his family. They could be a lot of fun.

The two reached Tuckborough by the evening and were greeted by Paladin and Eglantine, Pippin's parents, and all of his siblings. Eglantine gave both of them a hug and a kiss and invited Merry to stay for a few days. After a hearty supper, Merry and Pippin told the family all about their camping trip. Pippin kept the part about the elves out and Merry didn't mention it either. The whole family found their adventure very amusing.

That night, Merry slept in a warm bed in the guestroom, and Pippin in the trundle bed next to it. Merry told scary stories to Pippin that kept him up half the night, while Merry slept soundly.

The next morning, they ate a large breakfast before going outside to play in the hills of Tuckborough. The long dry grasses waved in the wind against Merry's legs as he walked up a hill. Sitting at the peak, he enjoyed the silence and the view. He plucked a piece of grass and chewed on it absently. Pippin walked up the hill, sat next to him in silence, and picked his own piece of grass to chew. Together they sat in peace, smelling the sweetness of the grass as it blew past them.

"How fast do you think you could roll down this hill?" asked Merry after a while.

"I don't know. You could time me," Pippin replied.

Merry stood up while Pippin lay down on his stomach. "Ready?" Pippin asked, looking up at Merry.

"Go!" Merry said. He counted out the seconds as Pippin rolled down the hill, over and over again, until he reached the bottom. "Eight! Only eight seconds!" shouted Merry.

Pippin stood up, tried to walk, and fell over. The world around him spun as he tried to get back up. Finally, things calmed down and he could walk again. Pippin took deep breaths as he walked back up the hill.

"Eight seconds! That's great, let's try it again and see if you can do it in less than that," Merry suggested.

Pippin got back on his stomach and rolled down the hill again. He went very fast and beat his first time by two seconds! Pippin was even dizzier now. He stumbled and fell going back up the hill and sat for a long while by the time he reached the top.

"Do you want to try it again?" Merry asked. Pippin turned green, shook his head and continued to sit. Merry sat down again, with his back against Pippin's and looked around. The hills and grass continued on as far as he could see. He wasn't used to this. Brandy Hall was right on the river. There wasn't any water here, except deep underground. But there was a beauty and majesty that Merry took great delight in.

Pippin leaned against Merry while he let his stomach calm down. Why had he done that? He just couldn't say no to something if Merry thought it was a good idea. After a while, Pippin felt good enough to walk again and together they walked back down the hill and went to the hole for second breakfast.

After a few days of getting to know each other better, Merry said goodbye and left for Brandy Hall to see how his parents were doing. Pippin was quite sad to see him go, but looked forward to seeing him at Fredegar, otherwise known as Fatty, Bolger's birthday in Hobbiton in a couple of weeks.

Pippin had a big favour to ask his mother and he hoped she'd be willing to do it. He needed a new outfit and wanted it done in time for the party.

The weeks flew past quickly and suddenly it was the day of the party and Pippin was very excited because his special outfit was ready. He proudly put it on and got in the wagon for the drive to the Bolger's hole in Hobbiton.

There was food and music and many hobbits to visit with. Pippin had a hard time finding Merry and wandered around for a while.

Merry was in the barn, alone, with Estella Bolger, Fatty's sister. Together they sat in the hay, their fingers entwined, whispering to each other. Merry leaned in to kiss Estella when she began to giggle. "I didn't know you had a little brother," she said, looking over Merry's head.

"I don't," Merry replied, confused. Slowly he turned around and saw Pippin.

"Hello Merry!" Pippin greeted him, running up to the pair and jumping on the hay, sitting down next to them.

Merry couldn't believe what he saw. Pippin had on an exact copy of Merry's outfit: the yellow vest, the shirt, the pants; with the exception of that stupid scarf he always wore. Merry thought he was going to die of humiliation. And in front of Estella of all people! He could never live this down.

Estella thought Pippin was quite adorable and began to lavish praise and attention on him, which made Merry very angry. Estella saw how angry he looked but knew there was no reason for him to be. She couldn't help it if Pippin was the cutest thing she'd ever seen, trying to be just like his big cousin. Estella took Pippin's hand, and together they walked out of the barn. They made their way to the dancing and shared a lively dance together, leaving Merry trailing behind them. He stood in the crowd of on-lookers as the dancers spun around. As Estella passed by him, she grinned at Merry and winked. He felt better and watched the two having fun. He realized Pippin did look just like him, only he thought it was funny now.

When the dance was over, the trio walked to the food table to fill their plates full of good things to eat. They were sitting at a table, eating and laughing, when a couple of young hobbits came up to them. Tolman and Wilcome Cotton, brothers and bullies, thought it was very funny that Merry and Pippin would be wearing matching outfits at the party. "Well, well, well; what have we here?" Wilcome said, looking at Pippin. "Nice outfit, Pipsqueak, yellow is definitely your colour," he said.

Tolman laughed at the joke and followed suit. "Did your mummy make that for you? Where have I seen it before? Oh yes, that's right, on you!" Tolman pointed at Merry and laughed again.

Pippin never thought anybody would make fun of him for dressing like Merry. He just wanted to be like him in every way. He felt his cheeks burn with embarrassment and his eyes began to fill with tears.

"Pipsqueak's a crybaby!" Wilcome yelled and the two brothers cackled wildly.

Estella put her arm around Pippin and scowled at them. At the same time, Merry was up in a flash and punched Wilcome in the eye. "Nobody makes fun of Pippin," he growled, swinging around to face Tolman, punching him in the stomach. "Get out of here, both of you, or you'll get worse than that." The brothers slunk off to recover from their wounds.

Merry sat down again, next to Pippin, glaring in the direction they'd gone in. He put his arm around Pippin too, protectively. Slowly they eased back into the fun of the party and had a wonderful evening.

After that day, Merry and Pippin were quite inseparable. Pippin wore his own clothes again, but could always be seen trailing not too far behind his favourite older cousin, Merry.


End file.
